May the Best Girl Win
by TKLF42
Summary: TK made a mistake and both he and Kari are facing the consequences. River is TK's childhood friend, Kari is TK's fellow DigiDestined. Skye is a fan girl longing to be more. The girls make a deal in the forest to help TK out. But in the process... May the best girl win. (More descriptive inside) Submit any requests for who you want to win. (Terrible summery, sorry)
1. Chapter 1: All His Fault

TK is a boy who made a mistake and now feels like he's being followed by every 8 to 10 year old on the planet. Kari is a friend who is suffering the same fate and just wants him to herself. River is a girl at TK's elementary school who had been his best friend until the whole 'Digital World' incident and just wants to get him back. Sky is a fan who, like all others, is thrown away and wishes she was more. When these three girls meet they decide to make TK feel better and that, in the process, ... May the best girl win.

...

A ten-year-old TK sat at the movie theater, waiting impatiently. Oh, how he had waited and longed for this moment. To see himself on the big screen. To rewatch all his adventures in the Digital World. To be a star. Ever since he had gone to visit his dad at work on that fateful day.

_"TK? What are you doing here?" His dad had asked. TK swallowed hard._

_"Well you know the Digital World..." He began._

_"The one Myotismon came from?" His father asked._

_"I... uh... wrote a script if err..." TK's voice trailed off._

_"You probably want to see the boss for that kind of stuff kiddo." His father had said, messing with his hair before getting up for some errand. TK located his dad's boss's office and knocked on the door._

_"Anybody home?" He called. There was no reply. TK quickly scribbled some things on the top of his TV show script that he had spent his free time for the past who-knows-how-long. His videogame skills were getting a bit rusty. 'I want no money, just consider this. I have some casting ideas..." TK scribbled the names of his friends next to their respective self. He had asked all of them beforehand but nobody took him seriously. Just wait, they'd see._

A few weeks after that he had gotten a call asking him if he wanted to play the role of, 'TK' in a new TV series. He had said yes and was thrilled that all his friends had agreed as well. It turned out that the manager had sent the script to Hollywood with a few notes of her own and so, over the next few summers, the Digidestined gang had travelled to California and filmed ten hours each day. Luckily, they were all in perfect character- all the time. His mother had showered him in praise and the rest of the Digidestined had supported him every step of the way. Nobody but them would ever know he wrote that script. Nobody but him would know why. Not for the money, or the fame, or the girls, but to be able to turn on the TV and relive every moment of their adventure.

"I ... so... ed" Kari whispered.

"What was that?" TK asked, leaning closer. He couldn't hear her over the sound of Matt munching popcorn.

"I a.. s... ex... ed!" Kari whispered louder.

"What?" TK leaned even closer.

"I AM SO EXCITED!" Kari yelled at the top of her voice, right into his ear.

"Well if I wasn't deaf before I certainly am now." TK said, a bit louder than necessary.

"You most certainly are." Kari said before collapsing into a giggle fit. TK joined in, glad he could at least hear her in her normal voice. To go deaf at the age of ten... TK shivered before laughing even harder than before.

"Shh, it's starting." Matt said. TK tried stopped laughing only to realize who had told them to be quiet. His face went red trying to contain his amusement. Kari, however, failed.

"Matt *laugh* told us *double laugh* to be quiet!?" She practically rolled out of her chair. TK and the gang were so happy about the preview of the show that they laughed at everything.

"TK..." Matt said warningly. Both TK and Kari stopped laughing. Come to think of it, it wasn't even that funny.

...

Just after the preview

...

"So... how'd it go?" Asked TK's mom as he walked into the house. He had just walked down a red carpet to his personal actor limousine surrounded by some of the biggest stars in the world. And they were all talking about how good it was!

"It was grea..." TK yawned.

"All right my little star," his mom said, guiding him to his bed and kissing his cheek. "Sweet dreams."

TK was woken up by the sound of screaming. He sat bolt upright in bed. What as wrong? He quickly got dressed and put on his hat before opening the window to check what was going on outside. Meanwhile, the ruckus continued and there were screams and yells and words that TK just couldn't quite make out.

"Oh my MagnaAngemon." TK said, opening the window before closing it again and immediately wishing he hadn't. They were the first words that came to mind. It seemed like every eight to ten year old girl on the planet was outside his house. Thank gracious it was a Sunday. Otherwise... school...

"Good morning TK," said his mother cheerfully. "They called today and told me that the show was a big success and that they want you and the rest of the actors at the convention center by noon today to sign autographs before the hype wears off."

"Of course they do..." TK mumbled, sliding into his seat and nibbling at his pancakes until he was full. He had woken up late and only had about an hour to get ready and ride in the car ten miles. With all this girl-traffic he was lucky if he made it to the car at all. His mom handed him a packed lunch and a large-

"Why are you handing me your weed clippers?" TK asked. His mom looked at him and that said it all. They walked, back to back, to the car.

"Where'd you get your hat?" One asked, reaching out a stretched hand only to pull back at the sight of the weed clippers.

"How do you do your hair?"

"What's in your lunch?"

"Are you free tonight?"

"Do you want to go to the movies with me?"

"Do you want to meet me in Odaiba park?"

"Are you single?"

"Are you in love with Kari?"

"Are you as brave as the role you play?"

TK wished he had two extra hands to plug his ears. Or maybe a gazillion extra hands to make them quiet. At last he was in the peaceful, quiet safety of his own car. The girls (and parents and some boys in rainbow t-shirts) all moved out of the way when they saw the lights turn on. TK's mom was a rule-follower on the road but he couldn't help but notice that she was going about five miles over the speed limit. TK saw girls taking with their friends on the streets stop when they saw him at a red light and wave, smiling. He sat lower in his seat, wishing he had tinted windows.

The parking lot for the convention center was closed to visitors so the walk inside was actually somewhat... pleasant. One inside his friends noticed his tired expression and moved in to comfort him. Just as Tai was about to put a hand on his shoulder-

"Right this way TK," said a man in a blue business suit. "You're our main attraction for all the girls. Five dollars and autograph and you keep one."

"Okay." Said TK, sitting down in the chair that was given to him. There were short separators surrounding him, just high enough that a full-grown man couldn't look over them. He was surrounded by posters of himself, posters of MagnaAngemon. The actor who played MagnaAngemon's voice, walked up and sat down next to him.

"Young man," said the man in the business suit. "There are over five-thousand _scheduled _appointment with you. That's not including the walk-ins. You are going to be very, very rich." TK smiled at him weakly. Great, just great. What's had he landed himself into?

Five hours later with a ten minute lunch break and they had finally stopped letting people in. He only had twenty more signatures to go through but two minutes to get them done and he didn't want to be late.

"Hi TK," said the girl in front of him. "I just wanted to ask-"

"Next." TK called, barely hearing her. He might have been a bit cold but he had nineteen more autographs to get done. Besides, she was just one one them. One of the thousands...


	2. Chapter 2: Just a Fan Girl

Oh and yes, I know that this actually happening is the rarest thing ever but it's fiction for a reason and I said Hollywood because I live in California and am therefor blind to pretty much anywhere else ever. Thanks for reading anyways!

I don't own Digimon or else the second season wouldn't exist and I wouldn't be writing fanfictions, I'd be writing episodes.

...

Skye sat on the bench outside the convention center bathroom, holding _the_ paper in her hand. The paper with his name on it, nothing more. She might as well have looked it up on the internet and printed it out. It was a piece of paper, no words, no handshake, no jumping up and down. TK, or at least the TK she knew, wouldn't be that cold. He just wouldn't.

Oh yes, Skye knew perfectly well that TK was really TK from her favorite TV show. So what if he didn't exactly have evidence? She just knew! And she knew from the moment she saw his face that she was in love with him. The way he was happy-go-lucky just seemed to blow away her cares. Not to mention his adorable Digimon, Patamon. Yes, they were like her angels they gave her so much hope. So what if she had only watched half of the season, she watched as many as she could fit into one plane trip to her new home in Japan. Their new apartment was even close to TK's house. She would go to his school! Her despair over the insignificance of the paper vanished.

"Ugh, I just wish all these fan girls would go away! They're making TK all depressed!" Wait, that voice was awfully familiar...

"Kari?" Skye asked, jumping to her feet, facing the girl who was walking out of the bathroom.

"The autograph booths closed five minutes ago, the convention center will close soon," Kari said. Her voice was a tangled mixture of tiredness, annoyance, and... hatred? "You should go."

"Gee, for a little while away from the Digiworld, you sure have changed Kari." Skye said, suppressing a giggle.

"What do you mean?" Asked Kari, poorly feigning ignorance.

"Don't lie to me, you've really been to the Digiworld and you aren't the kind-hearted girl you once were." Skye said, this time failing to suppress her laughter. What a joke, Kari wasn't all-powerful or all-knowing or even the slightest bit impressive, not to mention her cold attitude. Anyone who paired her with TK was kidding themselves.

"Sorry it's just that because of you-" Kari stopped herself, seeing Skye's glare. "Because of the fan girls he seemed really tired and so distant that I can't snap sense into him! I tried talking to him but he brushed me off and went home without a word."

"Yeah, I know I'm just a fan girl but I'd do anything to make TK feel better," There. Skye had admitted it. "Whoa, that made me feel infinitely better."

"Wait, what did you say?" Asked Kari.

"That made me feel infinitely better about my position in life?"

"Before that."

"I'd do anything to make TK feel better?" Skye wasn't sure she liked where this was headed. Her sorry great when she saw Kari grin at her.

"I think I have a plan."

...

What does Kari have in mind? Is Skye really just a fan girl? What about River, the other one? What role does she have to play in this plan? Find out on the next episode of- ahem- see you next chapter. R+R please!


	3. Chapter 3: River's Course

River was sitting in her room, quietly reading a book or at least- pretending to read a book. Really, she was just scared. She never should have encouraged TK to write about his adventures in the Digital World. Now, because of her mistake, he was going to be followed by flocks of stupid girls for the rest of his life!

_'Wasn't it his idea?_' A part of her asked. No, she had encouraged it. Well, best not to think of it now. TK would be at school that day so she could just talk to him and it would be all better. He had always made things better just by talking to her, that was why he was her best and only friend. She could practically remember the first time they had met.

_"Hi there! It's my first time going to a school! Oh, right, I'm in Kindergarten. That makes everybody new doesn't it?" A little kid with blonde hair and bright blue had said. River, who had been shy, had just been approached by a stranger!_

_"Uhh..." River wasn't sure what to do. The boy was being friendly but- she had never had any friends before._

_"My name's TK, what's yours?" The boy said, still cheerful. River knew she wasn't supposed to be rude._

_"River." She replied in barely more than a whisper._

_"Oh you're shy aren't you? Say, I'll be your friend so you won't have to be shy to me anymore!" TK said._

That was how it had started. River and TK had met underneath that same tree everyday for the rest of the year and when the next school year started they were still friends. One day, just a bit into the year, there was a career day at school when all the kids would go around different stations and decided what they wanted to be when the grew up.

_"Look River, a hat designer! Say, let's go there first, then to the videogame designer, and then we can check out the chef, the actor, and the salesperson!" TK said, dragging River over to a colorful little display of hats. At first, River had been upset. She really wanted to see the chef! _

_"Hi kids, I'm Sophie and I make hats for a living. I know it sounds a bit boring but once you get designing it's really fun!" Said the person at the booth, showing them some sketches of hats. River was fascinated. _

_"I want to be a hat designer!" River had told TK as they were walking towards the videogame designer._

_"That's cool! I bet you'll be good at it, you can draw really pretty." TK had said._

River had never given up on her dream and for Christmas that year she had gotten a hat making kit (the instructions she promptly 'lost') a little blue necklace with a soft stone and some of the usual clothes. River promptly set to work, making what her future self would declare the ugliest and weirdest hat ever but she at that moment thought it was the best.

_"TK, TK, look! My first hat!" River had said, running up to him on the last day of school before summer break._

_"Awesome River, I told you that you'd be great at it! But wait, why's there a little hole in the middle?" TK asked._

_"This is the best part," River told him, pulling her necklace's stone to her mouth. If the stone had been any harder she would have cracked her teeth but miraculously the stone split perfectly into two halves. River pulled a thing of super glue out of her pocket and glued the stone into the hole. "For you." She said, handing TK the green hat, now with a jewel in it._

_"For me?!" TK asked, surprised._

_"As long as you promise that we'll be friends forever." River added, putting the necklace back on._

_"I promise." TK said, putting on his new hat. They shook on it, it was a deal._

River grinned at the memory, hurriedly putting her clothes on, brushing her hair, and putting on her necklace. It was time to go to school and see TK!

"River! Time to go!" River rushed to the front door where her father was waiting with a small bun to eat in the car. When she arrived at school, she had to run to make sure she got there before TK. Of course it was hopeless, TK was not only always there before school started, she was just barely on time.

"Good morning class," Said the teacher just as River slid into her seat, panting and out of breath.

"Hello, I'm Marcel and I'm from Odaiba." Said a dark haired boy at the front of the classroom. River's pupils widened, this was wrong.

"Of course, with the arrival of a new friend, an old one has left us. Unfortunately, our little rising star TK will now be homeschooled." River heard the door slam and felt a pain in her chest and in her thighs. It took a moment to realize what she was doing. Oh, her mom and dad where going to be hopping mad but she didn't stop herself. River was going to see TK and he would make everything better. After all, he was her best and only friend, right?


	4. Chapter 4: Flame on the Water

I don't own Digimon but really, if I owned Digimon I'd just make it go bankrupt with my terrible writing skills.

...

Kari was grouchy. She had just been forced to walk a gazillion miles because of all the traffic just to get to TK's house. Every parking spot was taken! Now she was ready though, ready to see TK and make him feel better. As much as Kari hated fan girls, this one-Skye- he'd been helpful. Especially since she had an older brother who was about the same height as TK. Kari handed Skye's brother the replica of TK's hat.

"Alright, it's my turn now but next time we can both go together." Kari told Skye. Skye nodded and took her older brother's hand before sprinting down the block with him. Kari stepped up to the crowd and pulled out the best fake tears she'd ever cried.

"Hey," one of the fan girls said, noticing her. "Isn't she Kari?" She other girls turned to look at her.

"Wait, isn't she dating TK?" One of the girls asked. The group moved into a circle formation like a pack of... Kari was sure they were some predatory animal. And she was they prey.

"It's-it's too late!" Kari cried out, trying to imagine what she would do if it were actually true.

"You can't fool us!" One shouted. The group moved a little closer.

"Wait, let's hear her out." Another suggested.

"H- he's already chosen one of you fan girls!" Kari said, pointing at the disappearing figures of Skye and her brother. All at once, every girl who was circling her was away and sprinting towards the duo. Kari hoped they would survive the rampage. Kari turned around only to see a girl with long black hair ringing the doorbell. The voice box answered but Kari was too far away to hear what it said. The door opened and Kari ran to protect TK from what was evidently another fan girl.

"Oh hi Kari, you're here too?" Asked TK, a smile on his face.

"TK, I know you well enough to know that something's wrong." The girl said, ignoring Kari's presence. Kari felt a twang of jealously, why did this girl think he was faking?

"It's the fan girls..." TK said, making Kari even more jealous. Why hadn't she noticed? "Anyways, come on in. Oh and River, your mom and dad are going to be hopping mad."

"I know but once I heard you were being homeschooled..."

"You had to come see me?" TK said, finishing her sentence. The pair started laughing, leaving Kari Left out.

"Who is she?" Kari asked. TK stopped laughing suddenly, as if he had just realized that Kari was there.

"My name's River," The girl said for him. "You're Kari, the girl from the Digital World?" Wait, how did this girl know about the Digital World?

"How-" Kari began.

"I was his emotional support for writing the script to turn in," River said, as if she knew what Kari was about to say. She turned TK. "Your hat is getting a bit small." She noted.

"I can't get rid of it, it's unique!" TK said, holding his hat like someone was going to take it away. Kari knew just how unique the hat was, she had once tried to shop for in in a bigger size but the hat just... didn't exist.

"I hope not," Said River, teasingly. "You know how much trouble it took to get you it!"

"I know, I can't find it anywhere!" Kari said, trying to join their conversation. There was an awkward pause before both TK and River started laughing at the same time.

"Of course you can't find it, River made it for me in first grade in exchange for being best friends forever." TK said between laughs.

"I even made him promise, too." River said. TK noticed Kari's expression and stopped laughing, River a bit after him

"Of course, I can have more than one best friend," TK said hurriedly. Kari glared at River. "Uh... I'll get you two some water."

_'One move and you'll be sorry.'_ Kari thought at River, as hard as she could. Maybe Kari couldn't read eyes but she could have sworn she knew exactly what River was saying back.

_'I don't care, I'm TK's_ best _friend.'_ Kari winced, this game had gotten a whole lot more interesting.


	5. Chapter 5: A Deal

And yes, I did skip Skye because she's running at full speed throughout half of this chapter.

...

_'I don't care, I'm TK's _best_ friend'_ River thought, as hard as she could. Kari winced, getting the message. River knew _everything_ about her adventures with TK and she knew nothing about River. She even tried to buy TK a new hat!

"Hi guys, I'm back with wa-" TK stopped, feeling the pressure in the room. River mentally slapped myself, it wasn't fair to TK for us to have a fight when he was already upset.

"Thanks TK," River said, taking the glass of water. "Now tell me, is there any way I can help drive away the fans?" River noticed Kari's surprised expression and wondered how TK could be so shortsighted as to be friends with someone who obviously didn't care about his feelings. River took a sip of her water. There was ice, just the way she liked it.

"Well honestly I could just use some company besides crazed fan girls. Oh, and some fresh air but it's not like I can ever get any of that." TK said sadly. River nodded in empathy, she had once been sick for an entire month and hadn't been let out of the house and at the end of it she was so excited to be out in the air she slept outside for a week. A plan flew into her mind.

"Hey TK, do you have a computer?" She asked.

"Uh yeah, why?"

"I have a plan to get you some fresh air." She explained. TK looked confused but didn't say anything as he showed her his computer. River quickly logged on.

"How did you-?" Kari began.

"One of TK's weaknesses, he has the same password for everything." River explained.

"Hey!" TK protested. But he wasn't denying it. River clicked away at the keyboard, occasionally pressing commands until a white screen with a bunch of words and a little red rectangle showed up. River clicked some more until the rectangle turned green.

"Taa daa!" She announced.

"A. What is that? B. How did you do that!?" TK asked in astonishment.

"I took a summer camp on how to hack things, hacked into a few digital hacker's accounts to figure out the complex stuff and did trial and error till I found this site. TK and Kari may I present to you the DigiPort!"

"But even Izzy can't-" Kari began.

"Izzy was looking in all the wrong places," I explained. "Besides his computer is completely outdated."

"So how do we get there?" TK asked.

"Just hold up your digivice and say, 'digiport open.' Since I don't have a digitize I'll just hold on to both of you." I told them, putting my hands on their shoulders.

"Digiport open!" TK and Kari shouted at exactly the same time. I felt a hand on my shoulder at the last minute and then I was falling, falling into the Digital World.

"Whoa, the Digital World is just like you described TK." River said. When there was no reply, River looked around for the other two and whoever had hitched a ride.

"Urg, get off me." River heard a moan from below. She looked down to see a pile of bodies on the floor. There was TK and Kari and a little blonde girl with fluffy hair.

"Let me help you up." River said, helping the stranger up first, then Kari, then TK who was at the bottom.

"I can't believe I'm really back," TK said in amazement. "Thank you River."

"Who are you?" River asked the stranger.

"Skye, what are you doing here?" Kari asked at the same time.

"Hi Kari. My brother and I ran a good square around lots of blocks before splitting up so I could make sure you kept your end if the deal." The girl named Skye explained.

"Who's this Kari?" TK asked. Skye winced as if she expected him to recognize her.

"You don't think I could subtract those fan girls without a little help do you? I promised Skye I'd introduce you two." Kari told TK. My mind figured it out instantaneously, Skye was another fan girl. I felt a mixture of sympathy and anger.

"Hey, you were at the convention center weren't you?" TK asked. Skye nodded numbly.

"Kari, is that you?" River turned to see a small cat, evidently Gatomon, walk out of the canopy.

"Hi Gatomon!" Kari said, rushing over to greet her Digimon.

"I should go find Patamon," TK decided. "You... three stay here." River nodded, TK and Patamon's bond was unbreakable. TK disappeared into the thick forest.

"So... you're TK's elementary friend?" Kari asked, knowing the answer.

"Yup, he was my first friend and he's my best and only friend," River said, her voice full of determination. She turned to Skye "And you're actually a helpful fan girl?" Skye winced.

"I- I guess. I just moved to TK's neighborhood. His image is the friend I never had." Skye said.

"Well then," Kari said. "We can agree on two things here."

"What?" Skye asked.

"We all want TK to be happy and we all know that TK can only have one best friend." Kari explained.

"I am not sure I like where this is going." River said.

"I propose that we work together to take care of the unhelpful fan girls once and for all and along the way..." Kari paused for effect, allowing River to take over.

"May the best girl win." River declared. She turned to Skye.

"I'm in." Skye said, as if she could ever be TK's best friend. As if either of the could be TK's best friend.

"Let the games begin!" Kari said as they all shook on it. It was a deal.


	6. Chapter 6: Cloud 372

I was serious about the recommending who should win. Note, whatever Skye may think it's not just those three who can compete. If anyone asks politely I will involve the other females too. So far nobody has reviewed though so I might just have to choose myself... *evil grin*

...

Skye couldn't believe it. She was on Cloud 9! She was on Cloud 10! She was one Cloud 372! She, just another fan girl had been invited to be in the secret deal. She actually had a chance at winning TK's heart! Of course she knew the chance was slim, TK had nearly died with Kari several times and though she hadn't heard the whole story she could tell that River and TK had been friends for a long time. Still, any chance was a chance. She wasn't going to give up hope, or TK, that easily!

A whole day had passed since the girls agreed to compete for TK. They had spent the night in the Digital World, not wanting to put up with their parent's anger. Skye knew she was just here because of her dad's new job and that by staying away she was probably worrying her parents to no end but... it was like a sleep over with friends! Anyways, the girls and TK had been staying over at Gennai's house and were going to stay there until they had a good plan on how to take care of the fan girls.

Kari, in one corner, was off read in a book. TK was off having a conversation with Gennai about how 'irresponsible' he had been to share their stories to the world. River had left to who-knows-where and Skye was watching Digimon with subtitles, desperately trying to catch up with TK's adventures. She had stayed up the whole night and had only a few more episodes to go. Skye was just about to press play when she heard a beautiful music playing outside. A flute? Gennai had several bases besides the one under the lake and they were currently in the rainforest. Who could be playing the flute in the rainforest?

Skye paused the autoplay, right in the middle of the theme song and got up to investigate. She wandered through a pair of open doors and gasped at the wonderful sight. It was even more beautiful than she had imagined, like a rainbow. Who could stay inside in a place like this? Skye noticed River sitting down with her legs between the railing, playing a small wooden flute and gazing down at a bubbling brook below. River's beautiful dark hair blew in the breeze, like a picture out of a fairytale. So River was the one playing the flute! The music stopped abruptly.

"It's not fair to either of us. They get to see this whenever they want. Us? We're nothing. Once we leave this place we won't be allowed to come back, not according to Gennai. Unless we miraculously become Digidestined we're more of the Digidoomed." River said.

"Oh don't lose hope! Remember how everyone saw a digimon before becoming Digidestined? I'm sure we'll see a fight here sometime soon and then we'll get our digimon." Skye said determinedly.

"How can I not lose hope when he's been lost ever since he got back from the Digital World. It- changed him somehow," River shook her head, still sitting down. "No, the Digital World is the bond he and Kari have that him and I don't. Even if I were a Digidestined I could never join them and take that away from her."

"Maybe you're right, maybe being a Digidestined means nothing. Maybe thousands of kids all around the world are Digidestined too and if you failed they could just as easily replace you," Skye said. "But I've seen the was TK looks at you, you're his best friend and nothing can change that. But, out of curiosity, how did you get into the DigiPort?"

"I hacked into it."

"Well then, that's what you need to do," Skye said as if it were obvious. "Make every kid who has ever seen a digimon a Digidestined and taa daa, TK and his adventures don't matter as much because they're having adventures of their own." River stood up and turned to face Skye.

"That's- a really good idea. Thank you. You know, it's kinda surprising how we are in a contest with one another and yet you help me." River commented. Skye shrugged, maybe she was a nice person or maybe it was for show in case TK was watching. Whatever had made Skye help River was going to help her win TK's heart but this now there was another challenge- win TK without losing connection to these two girls, her new friends.

"Anytime." Skye said to accompany her shrug as River walked past to the computer room. Skye went back inside and watched the last two episodes of Digimon to the steady sound of keys clacking. As the Digimon and their partners separated, Skye felt a single tear roll down her cheek. She had no time to be sad, however, because River had finished the job.

"TK! I fixed it! Thanks to Skye I took care of it once and for all!" River shouted from her chair. Kari looked up and both she and Skye dropped what they were doing to go see. Skye got there first and saw an image of hundreds of little blue dots covering the map.

"What is it River?!" TK shouted before running into the room.

"I made anyone who's ever seen a Digimon a Digidestined so they would be too caught up in their own adventures to notice yours! And now I'm sending a few wild digimon to where the disk versions are made to make sure they stop being made. Once that's done I'm sending emails to all the important TV channels to make sure they stop showing Digimon!" River said, her voice full of excitement.

"So it'll be like the TV show never existed?" TK asked, his voice a mixture of joy, disappointment, and admiration.

"Oh no, there will be a few disks in libraries and stuff but yes, for the most part we will be safe forever." River explained.

"How did you- I didn't even get to- I was just researching- No fair!" Kari stuttered.

"What's no fair?" TK asked, surprised. Just then, Gennai walked in.

"In case you didn't notice, these three ladies are having a competition over you," said Gennai calmly. "Kari's been reading a few books on hacking and hat making to try and catch up with River who might me the best pupil I've had, better than Izzy. And then there's Skye who's been thrown into the loop and actually has managed to get on her feet and start running. Why, I remember when I was your age I never had so many girls try and hit on me at once! That's saying something! Come to think of it, I was pretty handsome in my youth," Gennai said, picking up speed. "Of course, there were never any girls since I'm not human and I was in the Digital World at the time. If I were you I'd be having a tough decision right now. After all, it's like a choice between bonds through life or death situations, bonds through friendship, and bonds through just the presence of being there. Honestly, I'd choose-" Gennai closed his mouth quickly when he realize that all the girls he had been talking about were glaring at him with murder in their eyes.

"Uhh..." TK was at a loss for words. Skye noticed him begin to sweat viciously.

"It's true," Kari admitted first. "We made an agreement while you were off in the woods looking for Patamon." Patamon chose that moment to come flying around the corner.

"Hi Gennai I was wondering if I could borrow,-" Patamon stopped and saw TK. "TK!" The little Digimon moved towards the partner he thought he'd never see again. He paused when he felt the attention in the room.

"Hi Patamon." Said Gennai as if the little digimon had just arrived for tea.

"I'll just um wait outside." Patamon said quickly, turning towards the door.

"No Patamon, come here," TK said. The little pig digimon complied. "Thank you for telling me but I think it's a little much for me to digest all the information. I'm going home and I don't want to see any of you until tomorrow," TK said. "DigiPort open!"

Skye stood there at the place where TK had been. He had taken Patamon. She had made a mistake. Instead of making things better to TK, the trio of girls had only made things worse. So how were they going to fix it?


	7. Chapter 7: The Making of a Sword

Making a character is much like making a sword- heroes get the best materials and get pounded fiercely but get up again. To make a villain you take aluminum, throw it in an active volcano, and hope it turns out okay. If you get a sword in the end- you're doing it wrong.

...

I decided to double up on Skye since I have... plans for her that may involve no more Skye chapters for a while. I am getting a bit desperate here. Please give your your opinion because if you don't this could be a very interesting story... with a lot of people who just didn't speak up not getting their way. And a lot of flames. And a poor author who will be attacked on all directions.

...

"Oh dear," Said Gennai, "I do believe I've said the wrong thing." Skye looked him in the eye, shooting at him all of the worst thoughts she could thing of.

"Ya think?" Kari said rhetorically.

"You can't talk, you didn't deny it," River said, "I seem to remember something along the lines of, 'It's true. We made an agreement in the woods while you were off looking for Patamon'." She mimicked.

"I wouldn't have admitted it if you hadn't broken the rules!" Kari said defensively.

"How did I break the rules. Were there any rules? I thought we agreed to _help_ TK, not give him more to stress over!" River said, barely containing her evident anger. Skye took a step back. These girls were over the top, one of them could get seriously hurt. They continued yelling at one another and Skye continued stepping back until she was at the door.

"Like you could ever be TK's best friend! _I'm_ TK's best friend! Who made him his hat? Who took care of the fan girl problem? Me, not you! TK saved you from Piedmon because he's a good person, unlike someone I know!" River yelled.

"I don't see how TK could ever be _friends_ with someone as cold-hearted as you! TK and I have been through so many things together, your years as little playmates means nothing!" Kari spat. Skye felt the doorknob and have it a good twist. The door gave way and Skye ran from the bickering pair, into the Digital World.

"Wait! It's not safe in there! You don't have a-" Gennai yelled. Skye couldn't make out the last word, she was too far gone.

Skye kept running for what seemed like hours (20 minutes) and when she finally slowed down, she suddenly realized how lost she was. Every tree looked the same, except for a tree with three knots that she had passed three times already. Upon reaching that same tree for the fourth time, Skye sat down under it. Well, at least she could hear herself think. Skye had always been good at problem solving. What next.

_' Well there's a hat-making computer-hacking genius who just made everyone who's ever seen a Digimon in real life a DigiDestined,'_ Skye thought, recalling the massive Seadramon she had seen once. _And then there's the partner-in-saving-the-world who is the most green-eyed monster since ever. And then there's TK who's brave and kind and even though he doesn't have to worry about fan girls anymore, two of his closest friends are fighting for his attention. Finally- well there's me. A nobody fan girl who got into the loop just before realising it was actually a noose. A well, sucks to be me, doesn't it?'_ There was nothing she could to to help the situation and there was nothing she wanted to do that would hurt the situation. Skye sat there contemplating her fate for a few minutes (2 and a half hours) before she heard voices.

"Look, I'm sorry for storming off like that. It's just- you can't expect me to just say that in front of my best friend wand the one who got me out of this mess," Said a startlingly familiar voice. "Besides... Gennai was right about it being kind-of a hard decision."

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN?!" Asked a screeching voice. Skye would recognize that voice anywhere. She bit her lip so hard it bled.

"Well I did know River since I was like- in Kindergarten and Skye is so helpful and kind that," Skye's heart started beating faster. "Well, I couldn't believe that you- they- would do that to me! And then you confessed and I could just see a kind of embarrassment that I didn't see in them. You were honestly sorry for messing with me." Her fists curled up.

_' No! It's not true! Kari had a fight with River and accused her of 'breaking the rules of the game!' It's just a game to her,' _Skye thought desperately '_She doesn't deserve you just for telling the truth, reconsider!'_ And then, much quieter in her own mind's ear, '_Am- Am I really helpful and kind? Do you think so?' _Skye's voice failed her.

"I know I made a mistake for agreeing to Skye and River's little game," Kari said. Skye was outraged. _Her _idea?! Kari had been the one to suggest it! River right have finished her sentence but it was all Kari's idea. "But we've been through so much together that I thought-" She choked up on what Skye knew had to be fake tears. "I thought I might at least put them off, rather then if I directly was with you and for them to keep trying." TK sighed.

"Just promise me you'll never do it again." He said. Skye stepped closer, afraid of what was going to happen. She pushed past some vines and watched as Kair drew close.

"Just promise me I'm the only girl for you." Kari said back.

"Promise." The pair's faces grew close and Skye put the vines back in place. She turned- and ran. After she considered herself a safe distance away she dropped to her knees on the forest floor.

"Skye." Whispered a voice in the wind, as cold as death. Skye felt a strange evil... light break down from the canopy. She quickly got up.

"Who's there?!" She asked, putting up her fists as if she could actually fight a digimon. She turned around wildly.

"Skye, I am not your enemy. I will help you. I am your friend." The voice said, a mixture of laughter and evil and 'I'm about to make you feel pain like you've never felt before.'

"What do you mean- help me?" Skye asked the air.

"I will help you... Make Kari pay..." Okay, Skye had to admit she was tempted. But she had watched enough episodes of Digimon to know that making deals with creepy evil voices was a _terrible _idea. Actually, she had enough _common sense_ to know that making deals with anyone creepy and evil was a bad idea.

"Yeah right, that's a _terrible_ idea," Skye said. "Why should Kari have to pay. TK is happy, I'm happy." She was lying. The voice knew.

"Oh come on, don't tell me you aren't tempted. I can _make _you a DigiDestined. I can _make_ TK love you." Skye shook her head.

"It's his own choice." She said, bitting her bloody lip again.

"Oh come on," the voice said in exasperation. "Even if you don't steal TK and make Kari pay you can at least tell him the truth and I have a lovely Digivice here that _literally _has your name all over it"

"What?" Skye asked. A digivice of her own?

"You don't _even_ have to go evil like I want you to, I just need to get rid of this thing because if I don't deliver it to you it will get _really _angry and if you've ever seen a Digivice get angry it is not a pretty sight," The voice said. "Just say, 'I am a DigiDestined' and-"

"I am a DigiDestined," Skye said. She looked around her. "Huh, that's weird. Ow! Man, did it have to hit me in the head?" Skye picked up a light blue ovary device with 'Skye' Written in bold red letters on the side. (A/N: A second-season Digivice _literally_ with her name on it). "This isn't a Digivice! I've been ripped off. Hey voice!" She lifted her Digivice into the air and suddenly, everything went black.

...

You didn't really think I'd let TK just be with Kari did you? This isn't the end, because I've just thrown my aluminum into the volcano

...

What happened to Skye? What will happen when TK knows the truth? Where is River in all of this? What will happen to Kari? And what about all the other girls in the DigiDestined? The fan girls who are still persistent? Where is Lillie, the author's favorite play-toy who mysteriously appears and ruins the storyline as punishment for people who don't review? Find out when I get around to writing the next chapter of... MAY THE BEST GIRL WIN!


	8. Chapter 8: In the Light of My Lies

Okay, let me get this straight- my new story about a bunch of my own characters has more views than my old one with Lillie Frost? Why?! And what's this about Davis: The Star being my best work?! Ah well, I guess this one is worth continuing, if not for the reviewers then just for the views... Nobody has submitted suggesting for the winner though. Gennai maybe but he's just a crazy old man. Right? So... I guess it's up to me. I _hate_ making decisions!

...

Kari held TK close, as if she would never let go of him again. This was it! She had won! That would show that River girl just how close she and TK are. Now she was TK's girlfriend, River could go ahead and be his best friend. But... only a friend. She smiled at the thought. And then there was Skye! Poor Skye, she would be devastated. Ah well, she never stood a chance anyways.

"What was that?" TK asked, breaking from their embrace.

"What?" Kari asked.

"I think I heard someone moving behind those vines." Kari listened carefully and could just barely make out the sound of retreating footsteps over the jungle floor.

"One of the girls?!" She exclaimed, turning to TK for advice.

"I think we can trust either of them to not get too jealous," he concluded. "We wouldn't want another 'have to save the world' case now would we?" Kari nodded.

"Let's head back to Gennai's house," She suggested. "Then we can come clean so that you won't have to be guilty anymore." '_So that I can gloat in front of the others.'_ She added silently to herself.

"Good idea," said TK. The couple (couple - Kari liked that) walked back to the house in the rainforest, their fingers intertwined.

"Hi TK! Nice to see that you're back. Say, what are you doing with Kari? Oh..." The old man seemed disappointed in TK's choice when he opened the door, "I see you've chosen. Personally... no- it's your decision. Although, I do wonder why. She got into a-" Gennai stopped when he saw the glare Kari was shooting him. "Did either of you see Skye by any chance? She left during the- Oops! I am not supposed to talk about that. River already left after Kari- oh never mind!" TK looked very confused. Kari turned to him.

"That means Skye's the one who caught us in the clearing," She explained sweetly. "And she's not back yet." The confusion turned into worry.

"I hope she didn't take it too seriously. More importantly, I hope that something isn't stopping her from coming back." TK said. Kari was beginning to have her doubts that TK knew for sure who he really loved. But she had made him promise and TK didn't go back on a promise unless... well, unless he found out that she was not in fact sorry for this little game of hers. _That_ would blow _everything_ up in her face.

"Yoo boo! Earth to Kari? You're going home now." Gennai said, waving a hand in front of Kari's face. Well, it certainly was better than blowing up. Kari looked at TK.

"Goodbye TK, we can search for Skye on the weekend so that our parents won't be upset over missing school." Kari told him.

"I know but it's Tuesday," TK said, "Who knows what could happen to a person- especially and angry person- in that many days?" Kari understood his point. Memories of Matt and Cherrymon rushed into her mind. The Digital World could change a person... for better or for worse... _forever_.

"I understand but it's just like you told me, we just have to trust that neither of them do anything stupid." Kari told him.

"Well, not in those exact words but I see your point. Goodbye, Kari. I love you." Kari had been waiting to hear those words since she first met TK. When he had first said them, it had felt like a dream come true. That feeling returned again. She had _TK_. Like, hopeful, playful, athletic, literal _ANGEL_ TK. Okay, so maybe not an angel. But he had one! And so did she. And there for they were made for each other.

"I love you too," Kair said, kissing him on the cheek. "Digiport, open!" The next thing she knew, Kari was falling.

Luckily for Kari, she knew that Odaiba schools' break lasted one week longer than the city where TK lived. She had simply told her mother that she had been at a friend's house and that was that. Shortly afterwards, Kari was scanning through her emails and found one from TK, pleading for help because he was grounded for life and had missed his first day of homeschooling. Kari laughed at the thought of TK, the energy-filled growing boy, trapped in his room like a cat trapped in a cage. Or, like a Gatomon trapped in a cage. Kari had, of course, _seen_ Gatomon in the Digital World but she hadn't really talked to her. It was a nice thought to say they were simply enjoying each other's company but they weren't. In fact, Gatomon had gone for a walk on their way to Gennai's and hadn't shown up to say goodbye. On Friday, Kari checked her email again.

'Kari-

Skye showed up on my doorstep asking for directions to the park. My mom's got her in the kitchen right now but I am not sure what to do. She seems really confused but knows who I am. Oh, and she keeps muttering the name, 'Kyokomon' when she phases out. Help!

-TK'

"Mom, I'm going out for a while!" Kari yelled, closing the window and racing down the hall to put on her shoes.

"Be back here by dinnertime!" Her mother called as she raced out the door. Kari honestly couldn't say if she'd be back at all. If her suspicions were correct, Skye had been confronted by and evil digimon in the Digital World. Only extreme shock could make someone phase out, mutter Digimon names, and be terribly confused. Right? She used her little tap-card for the ferry and sailed over the river between her and TK. That was poetic. There was a literal river, and there was a girl named River. Kari wasn't sure if the Sky had turned against her was well. After all, the sky had the sun, right?

"Kari, thank goodness you're here. Skye just passed out!" TK said, throwing the door open. If it hadn't been serious, Kari would have been jealous. But under the circumstances...

"Tell me everything you know," she said, rushing into the kitchen. "But first let's call Joe." She picked up the phone. Boy, would it be weird to talk to Joe or what? She hadn't seen or talked to him since they defeated Apoclymon but Kari was sure that Joe would know what to do. Besides, he already knew about Digimon.

"Hello?" Asked a familiar voice on the other side of the line.

"Hi Joe, this is Kari. No time for formalities though, a friend just passed out at TK's house." She told him, expecting the usual panic. Instead, Joe's voice was calm.

"I'll get my things and come over right away." He said. The line cut.

"Joe's on his way, now explain." Kari said, turning to TK who was carrying the unconscious body to a small sofa.

"Well, Skye rang my doorbell and asked if I knew the directions to the park and of course we were going to go look for her so I invited her inside," TK explained. Kari felt a pang of jealousy. "And once she was inside she knew who I was and her own name but not much besides that. I had to explain what a glass of water was and when I gave her one, she took a sip and just passed out. I mean, she put down the cup but then she just- folded up like a chair and fell down."

"She didn't know what a cup of water was?" Asked Kari in surprise. TK nodded.

"And when I asked her why she wanted to go to the park she just said that she had to meet an old friend." TK said. Kari's mind began to race. From what TK said, Skye was acting like someone who knew Skye but not necessarily anything else about the real world.

"So you think she's being... used by some sort of Digimon?" Kari asked, afraid of what the answer might be.

"I don't know but I've got a feeling we'll find more answers... in the park." And just like that Kair realised that there was no way River or Skye could ever get in again because after this little adventure... She smiled. She and TK were going to be closer than ever.

...

Hmm... looks like my aluminum's still got some poking bits that can stab and decently hurt someone. Ah well, better throw it in again.

...

Please review and/ or submit your suggestions for the winner. Current voters; Gennai and... air? Come on, you don't want the crazy old man to have his say, do you? And no, I won't tell you who he voted for but in case you didn't catch on it's definitely not Kari. So if you want a Takari you better speak now or forever hold your tongue. Forever...


	9. Chapter 9: Flow Freely

Hey guys, notice that my chapters are just getting longer and longer? I think I'm getting the hang of this! I have to update often though. Otherwise... nobody ever finds my stories. I searched up 'TK' and scrolled through all 37 pages. So far, I don't exist. Ah well, there are still no suggestions. I'm getting upset here. Would you like Lillie to come and mess the whole story up, sweeping TK off his feet and making everyone else hopping mad? I didn't think so...

...

When River got home she was yelled at. That made sense, she would have done the same thing in her parents' shoes. Alas, it did mean that River was confined to her room on 'independant study' For the rest of the week. She sighed, filling out the final math problem on the generic worksheet. River had been blocked from any means of communication with anyone besides her family and in her free time thought about Kari and Skye, her enemy and her friend. Both loved TK. River sighed again, knowing there was no way to stop Skye from hating her if TK chose River. River's thoughts wandered to the hat.

_' He promised to always be your best friend,' _River thought, trying to assure herself. _'No, he only promised to be your friend, not your _best_ friend. Besides, that's all you are to him, a friend.'_ River told that voice to shut up. She didn't need Kari's harsh words echoing in her own thoughts. So, rather then think about what the hat meant, River decided to think about the hat itself. It _was_ getting a bit small and with TK getting older he might want a hat that was less... weird. River pulled out her sketchpad and pencil.

"River! Dinner is ready!" Yelled her mom. River sighed and set the sketchpad and pencil down again. River kept thinking about it though. What would look best on TK?

_'Cream or grey,'_ She thought immediately, racing down the stairs. Now, what kind of hat? _'Billed cap? No that's just stupid. Think River, think,'_ She sad down at the table and served herself some rice.

"Your father should be back any minute now from that fishing trip with his friends." Her mother told her. There was a jingle of keys and a click as the door was unlocked. River's dad stepped inside, soaked to the bone.

"Sorry honey," he told River's mother. "It started to rain just as we began sailing in." Her mom helped him out of his raincoat and took the ice chest from him, hurrying off to the kitchen.

"So River, have you thought about your actions?" He asked, taking off his bucket hat and putting it on the rack.

_'That's it! Are bucket hats in season?'_ River asked herself. _'That way, if TK_ chose-' River choked on her thought. _'_If_ TK chose another girl he'd be able to get the hat in the next size up and be constantly reminded of those whose hearts he broke. Because only the original would be the right one!_' River smiled. Even _if_ she lost, she had a way to make a comeback.

"Yes dad." River replied , keeping her voice even. When dinner was done, River rushed up to her room to get to work. First, she sketched the hat- it was and astoundingly simple design. Then, River sorted through her leftover fabric and found a good amount of light cacky, creamish-whitish-greyish, fabric. She promptly got to work, deciding that she could decorate the hat with pins or something that was removable so they would be on every hat he as River was finishing up the base (the hat without pins) River heard someone tapping on her window. She hid the had and pulled back the curtains.

"Hi River," Said the familiar boy, sitting on a branch of the tree outside her window. "I wanted to talk to you and Kari." TK looked so innocent- so why was he hiding something. And why not talk to Skye too?

"Look, if this is about the fight then I apologize," She said. "I lost my cool and said a few things I shouldn't have. I just- can't stand that she thinks it's just a game! I don't know what it is but something about Kair just makes me a little furious." TK cocked his head to one side.

"Wait- what fight?" He asked.

"Just after you left Kari got upset at Gennai and Just got mad at her for being a hypocrite and then she accused me of 'breaking the rules' whatever those are and then," River paused. "Must I continue?"

"Please do." TK said, his face growing more confused by the minute.

"I said there were no rules and that we were supposed to help you and that _I _had been the one to fix the fan girl problem and make you that hat and that you only saved her because you're nice. The she called me cold-hearted and said that our years as 'playmates' meant nothing compared to your adventures and then-" River blushed but knew that with TK it was worth it to give the full and complete truth. "I told her that I didn't understand what had made her so cruel compared to when you traveled the Digital World and she said I wouldn't understand anything. I yelled that she had to read books to know how to hack and make hats and she yelled at me that I had to hack into professional hacking accounts to learn how to hack and that I had to be dumb to make such and ugly hat and then-"

"Hold up- She called my hat ugly?" TK asked. River nodded.

"And- if it's okay with you I'll skip to the end," TK nodded for me to skip it and I let out a long breath of relief. "And then I told her that I didn't care if she was a DigiDestined because she was one of millions now and so I really didn't care if hope and light were 'connected' because you and I were connected more than just by being a part of the same club and the she stormed off to the real world and I haven't seen her since. I'd like to apologise for what we did to you though," she added "It wasn't fair of us, we just wanted to make you feel better. I'm sorry our rivalry got out of hand."

"Wow- that's a completely different story then what Kari told me," TK said. River looked at him, asking the unsaid question. "She said that you accused her of ruining the game and that she ran away when you slapped her. She had the marks to prove it."

"Skye was there for the first part, I'm sure I have her word," TK laughed. "What is it?"

"Skye doesn't know what a glass of water it, _I_ wouldn't exactly want her as my only witness." TK pointed out.

"Gennai-" she began "Wait, what? Skye has amnesia?" Skye, her back-up plan. If Kari lied her way into TK, Skye would be River's friend. She already was. But now- She didn't know what a glass of water was?

"Nope, she remembers her name and my name and even your name but not much else," TK explained "But I didn't come here to hear about the fight, I cam here to get you do that I can talk to both you and Kari." River nodded and then reconsidered

"Great, I'll just jump down from the second story window and not break my arms and legs." She said sarcastically. TK gave her his little half smile and from the clouds descended and Angel. Angemon. Wow, River never though she would see Angemon in real life. He looked, well, heavenly. River saw what she was supposed to do and opened the window as far as it could go. She felt herself gently grabbed by the huge Angel and was scooped up in his arms while TM rode on his back. Flying was terrifying and fun and nauseating all at the same time. She threw up.

"Don't worry, it's a short trip." TK said. Indeed it was. Just a few moments later, when River thought she was going to die, she was on the ground.

"I prefer water and land transport, thanks." She told him. She was outside TK's house, in the community park where they had adventures before TK had _real_ adventures in the Digital World, the park I had gotten a peek at but had never gotten to play in. That was a good metaphor, she would use it on her children. If she had any. A person came rushing down the stairs.

"TK!" Kari shouted, running up to him and hugging him tightly. She noticed River. "Hi River." She was bad at hiding her hatred. River sighed.

"Look Kari, I'm sorry about before. I told TK about it and I know that I said some things that I shouldn't of." River admitted. Kari looked at her in surprise and then turned to TK.

"Well?" She asked him, obviously referring to the fact that he should make his choice now. I rolled my eyes, the apology changed nothing.

"Yes, well, River... about that... Kari," River held her breath. This was the moment. He would chose Skye with no common sense, Kari with no heart, or River with... impulse problems. "I already promised Kari that she's the only girl for me."

So this was it. This was what death felt like. The light from the sun had officially evaporated the water, before the water even had enough time to give the land a pearl. So much for those pins. Guess what was going to find it's way to TK's doorstep without a note? Skye- or at least the helpful and smart Skye- was gone. TK had gone to that summers camp she had convinced his mother to let him go to to be with his big brother and he had returned with Kari. A lying little rat, but a Kari nonetheless. River closed her eyes and felt a tear slide down her cheek. She turned and walked away. Not to home, not to Skye or anyone else. River found herself walking along the bank... of a river.

...

Gold is a soft metal. Prized for it's ease of use and quality as well as rarity, gold doesn't exactly make a good sword. Which is good, because I've never liked gold. Aluminum though, aluminum isn't still and it's got a decent hardness to it, better than that of some metals. Significantly worse than that if others. Aluminum is best for making characters (and no, not aluminum foil) because it represents the fickleness of human nature. We are just (and I mean just) hard enough to stick our foot in t he chain of progress and still live. We are so easy to change that it takes a while to even get used to ourselves. So tell me, who is aluminum and who is gold?

...

Nope, not the end. What about the meeting in the park? What happened to Skye? Does TK really end up with Kari? Who is this mysterious voice talking about metals and swords? Wait- you didn't really think that was an author's note, did you? Wow... okay, I did put it in there but it's not a note it's a though process for something actually in the story. R+R! Don't forget it suggest the winner this time or else. Haven't really figure out what 'else' is but I'm sure it won't be good because it'll have come from me.


	10. Chapter 10: Light is Blinding

Wham! Did you see that?! That last chapter was my longest document yet! Yup, definitely getting better at this. Still no reviews or suggestions. It says I have views but I'm beginning to doubt that... Come out, come out, wherever you are! Oh, I you want a hint, Look at the next piece of text in between the dot dot dots. If not, just don't. It's a hint of what might happen to Skye and who Gennai chose anyways. Gennai is a craaaaaaazy old man so don't take him seriously unless he chose whoever you want. Then, take him seriously by rooting for Gennai in the reviews section.

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La did la

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Oookay! Still here are you? Well, Skye is dreaming about writing a book and how she can mess with t he characters and his it relates to her real life. Oh, and how it relates to sword making. The evil digimon inside of her is very secretly planting thoughts about making Kari's life miserable. A bit like the Digimon Kaiser!

Anyways, Gennai did vote (unlike some people) and he voted for... *drum roll please* SKYE! Bet you weren't expecting that, were you? He's got six main reasons.

1) Kari is stuck with TK no matter what. Unlike the others, she can't just dump him because they have to save the world together.

2) River is super smart. Gennai likes smart girls as friends but having one close to you means that there could be some serious plotting in there.

3) Both River and Kari appear to have developed anger issues. They _hate_ each other and it shows.

4) In this story, Kari is a manipulative little liar. Sorry, but it's true. I didn't mean to make her this way, and air did want her to actually care about TK but... a story goes where a story goes eh?

5) Skye is common sense. Let's face it, who came up with the idea to have everyone be DigiDestined? A depressed and forgotten 'best-friend' and a fluffy haired, athletic, fan girl who can stay up all night and still come up with great ideas in the morning? Seems pretty one-sided. Let's see, TK- cares about his friends, wants to be an author, can somehow be cheerful in the midst of it all, and plays basketball. Skye- cares so much about TK she only gave in because of the 'truth', creative, turned her frown upside down even when she realized her hero didn't care about her at all, and can run fast. That brings us to...

6) Have you seen those legs? Anyone who can outrun hundreds of brainwashed fan girls for "A good square around lots of blocks", run into a house, figure out what was happening and put a hand on someone, get stood upon by a teenage girl, and still live to tell the tale without breaking a sweat is someone Gennai admires. Respect, Skye. Respect.

Yup, more spoiler lines to protect the meek.

KLa did fatwa.

These are lines in case you don't want spoilers

Quick!

SPOILER ALERT!

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**Okay, after this you can look.**

...

Skye picked up the piece of molten metal. It was dented here and there but there were no spikes, no thorns. She felt the weight in their hands. It was unbalanced too. Who called this a sword? Swords were heroes, this was a-

_' Is this me?'_ She asked herself suddenly. _'Am I like this?'_ Much to her surprise, a reply came in her own mind.

**_'Kari has tossed you into the lava,'_**It said, _**' When the volcano erupts you will either shoot out of it and take your revenge generated or you will be melted away, gone forever.**_**'**

_'Well I'm guessing I'm not literally in a volcano and since there's no way I want revenge on Kari, I'm willing to bet that I won't be melted away and gone forever.'_ Skye thought back. The evil voice in her mind laughed.

_**'I will **_**make_ you want revenge on Kari. You will want it so bad you will rip her to shreds and there is NOTHING YOU CAN DO TO STOP ME!'_** Skye let out an earsplitting scream as she was struck by a headache, worse than anything she had ever had before. She clawed at her head, trying to get the pain to stop. It didn't. So she did instead.

(Ha! Now it's not a spoiler. If you wanna see Gennai's opinion go on back up there because you've unspoiled the spoiler.

...

When Kari woke up, it wasn't to her alarm. Instead of the usual jingle that got her up because it was so darn annoying, she was woken up by an ear splitting scream from the living room. She was at TK's house. SHE WAS AT TK's HOUSE! She got up off the floor and looked at where TK was still sleeping peacefully. That kid could sleep through anything. She rushed to the living room. Joe was already running in from the kitchen, where he had been asleep.

"Make- make the headache go away." Skye whispered, curled up in a ball on the living room couch.

Joe rushed towards her, reaching out his hand. He had just barely placed his hand on her forehead before Skye started screaming again. Kari could see that he was determined to get Skye's temperature and the screaming continued for about five seconds until Skye moved his hand, her arm shaking.

"You don't have a fever, I don't know what's wrong" he said. Kari could tell that he was worried and honestly, she was worried too. Skye had survived fan girls, being stepped on, and the being alone in the Digital World for days on end. If something hurt her so bad she was screaming and giving up after five seconds, it was something bad.

"Do you think a wild Digimon got her? There are some pretty poisonous creatures out there- not to mention Digimon who can attack the mind." Kari said, looking directly at Skye when she said it. There was a moment's pause before Skye turned her head to Kari and their eyes met. There was something, cold and icy in those eyes. As if they were not glazed by darkness or death but shown such great light that they were- Light blue.

"Oh my- I mean. Um, what in the pickling world!" Kari said, trying as hard as she could not to curse. Skye was-

"K- Kari? Are you there?" Skye asked, her voice trembling and perhaps five notes higher then it should have been.

"Yes Skye," Kari said, reaching out to touch Skye's hand. "I'm right here." Skye's unseeing eyes hardened.

"Did you make this light? Can you haven't stop? It- It kinda hurts," Skye said. "And I thought I heard Joe but if you made it then you should be the only one to talk to me, right?"

"I didn't make the light," Kari said, shaking her head. She shook her fist as if it were a head shaking as well, right in Skye's hand. "Skye- you're bind" She reached out to tough her but got smacked away.

"That doesn't explain the light in the Digital World," Skye said. "Or the dreams about volcanoes. You're the only DigDestined who actually has light powers Kari, _and_ you don't like-" Skye stopped. Tears fell from her face.

"I wanna be a doctor not a therapist!" Joe exclaimed. Kari shot him a glare that would have silenced Piedmon. Skye was clearly in a lot of pain and Kari needed her to be corrupted by an evil digimon so Kari could stop her and make her bond with TK even stronger.

"Are you okay?" Kari asked.

"G-Go away." Skye stammered.

"But we're your friends." Kari told her.

"You're not _it's_ friend. And you aren't making your case any better by-" Kari stopped listening.

_ 'Yes! Yes! Yes! Now there was an _it!_ Skye was possessed!" _Kari thought in a sign-song voice. Her train of thought was quickly cut off.

"What? You what? That's worse. And to think, I was defending you this whole time!" Skye exclaimed. "What? No I'm not going to kill her- nuh uh, that'd be hypocritical. And poetic. But it would make TK sad. No!" Skye was clearly talking to the voice in her head now.

_'She's got a voice in her head! It's turning her evil! Time to tell TK so we can save the day and hopefully maybe he'll forget what River told him.' _Kari thought with glee.

"Wait- what'd River tell TK?" Skye paused, obviously listening to the voice. "Hello, you going to answer me Kari? You really shouldn't think so loud with you and it competing." Okay, so maybe she wasn't listening to the voice.

"Joe, I don't think you can help her, she's clearly delusional." Kari said, not taking her eyes off of Skye. There was no reply but the spam of some door as it closed.

"Hi Skye, you're awake. Do you remember what a glass of water is?" Asked TK walking into the room.

"Of course I know what a glass of water is. I was just telling your girlfriend here to stop thinking so loudly because it's a racket in here." She pointed to her head.

"Whoa, you know what Kari is thinking?" TK asked, amazed. This was getting out of hand.

"No she doesn't, she's delusional." Kari snapped.

"Of course." Skye replied.

"Try me." He folded his arms.

_'I AM A CUPCAKE!" _Kari thought, as loud as she could. Skye continued, unphased.

"You think Ill never figure out what you're thinking because you're thinking about how rude Kari has become and how old Kari never would have snapped like that," Skye said smugly. "And now you think you shouldn't have promised her that," she looked him in the eyes and he winced and nodded. Skye turned to Kari, "Don't give it ideas, I'd really have to fight the temptation to turn you into a cupcake."

"Wait, what?" Kari asked. She was actually going to be turned into a cupcake.

"Don't worry, I'm not _too_ tempted... yet. Aaaaaanyways, I have someone to meet in the park in a few minutes. Take care of yourselves, don't get turned into a cupcake without me, and _do not_ try and find River." Skye smirked and walked out the door.

"What... was that?" TK asked.

"I think Skye was infected by something in the Digital World," I said, restating my theory. I had new evidence. "She kept talking about how something inside of her wanted to kill me but she was protecting me from it and for like- a few minutes she was screaming and blind and Joe ran away."

"Joe ran away?" TK asked, surprised.

"I told him he wasn't a therapist and that he could leave if he wanted to and proof, he ran for it."

"We'll then, let's go save the world." TK said.

_'Let's go remind the world that I won.'_ Kari thought. She nodded. It was time to bring back her bond with TK.

...

Evil Kari for sure. Evil Skye? Where's River and why can't Kari look for her? Who is Skye meeting in the park? What's in her head? Have you reviewed yet? Have you checked the no-longer-a-spoiler? Do you root for Gennai or is he a crazy old man? I will answer your questions so please, please answer mine with a simple review. Still accepting votes! So far I'm rolling with Gennai but his vote doesn't found because I made it up on the spot and don't know what he'd actually say because I don't own the show. Yes, I know. Fortunately for the global economy, I do not own Digimon... *sigh* Still, ANYTHING?!


	11. Chapter 11: With or Without Hope

Dear people who read the spoiler, curiosity killed the cat

Dear people who read the spoiler after the chapter, so is Gennai crazy or does he have a point? Correct answer: He has six points.

Dear people who never read the spoiler, the cat was curious but didn't do what it's curiousness wanted it to do- so it got killed. You are the cat.

Dear people from the United States, Congratulations, you are one of the lucky 13 in 40 viewers who read all the at to this point. Same with you Canada and Thailand and Peru with less then half clicking. I am very disappointed. In them. Not you. (If it's because I suck at summaries just submit your own summary based off the first few chapters and I'll erase this note).

R+R. Please suggest the winner. _Please_.

...

River didn't know where to go. At first, she had gone to the river. It _was_ her namesake after all. River had debated going to the Digital World but decided that Gennai would rat her out. She couldn't just go _home_. And then there was TK. _TK._ She closed her eyes and imagined his little half-smile. He had been different when he came back from the Digital World. He was older somehow. TK- kind and caring and 'lets have a tug-of-war instead of fighting' TK- had killed countless evil Digimon and had even killed Apoclymon, who was clearly just sad and lonely. She let her mind wander down to where she would be if TK had been like that those years ago.

_"Hi there! It's my first time going to a school! Oh, right, I'm in Kindergarten. That makes everybody new doesn't it?" A little kid with blonde hair and bright blue had said. River, who had been shy, had just been approached by a stranger!_

_"Uhh..." River wasn't sure what to do. The boy was being friendly but- she had never had any friends before._

_"You could at least say something." The stranger said._

_"Erm, my name's River." She choked out in a squeaky voice._

_"I can't hear you when you talk like that," The boy said, shaking his head. "My name's TK, what's yours?"_

_"River." She repeated, a little higher in pitch._

_"Oh never mind, you don't talk." The boy named TK said, turning away and leaving the fake version of River's past self sad and lonely._

River felt a shiver go down her spine. Boy, if TK acted the way he did now back then, they never would have been friends. Did that mean that TK had changed so much that they could... no longer be friends? He had changed her in so many ways. If TK hadn't been there for her she wouldn't of had any friends. She wouldn't care about making hats. The chef had bored her out of her mind, the actor had been too cliche, and the salesperson had the cheesiest presentation ever. Her whole life- as she knew it- would be gone. River looked around to see that she had wandered over to the little park. River sat down under a tree and imagined watching TK play with the DigiDestined- would he be the same even if he never met her?

_'Ugh, it's hot Matt!' Imaginary TK complained._

_"Get a hat, it'll give you some shade," Matt suggested "And some protection." He added, messing with TK's hair._

_"But I don't like hats. Hats make you sweaty and they give you hat-hair," TK complained. "Of course, you always have hat-hair Matt..." The little DigiDestined scurried away from his advancing brother. Matt caught him and tickled the poor kid until they both lay laughing in the grass._

_"We'll just have to get you sunscreen then." Matt decided._

_"Yeah... no hats." TK said, dosing off._

For some reason River laughed at that version of the present. But then she remembered that if TK hadn't met her, she'd never have been able to convince his mom to let him go to summer camp. If TK didn't go to summer camp then Patamon would be all alone without a partner. And if Patamon didn't have a DigiDestined partner he wouldn't digivolve to Angemon. So if River had never met TK, all of the DigiDestined would be dead, along with the Digital Wolrld and her own world. So, in a way, River had saved the world. And if she could save the world then she could save herself from despair, with or without hope. River stood up, ready to face her family. What she saw when she stood up, stopped her in her tracks.

"Kyokomon." She whispered to herself. Kyokomon... was supposed to be a dream. She had dreamt of him... when she was two. Her imaginary friend until TK showed up.

"Kyokomon! Boy am I glad to see you!" River saw the fluffy-haired blonde say, jogging up to greet the Digimon. No- not a Digimon. Just- a dream.

"Master tells me you are his new toy." Kyokomon said. It was honestly a bit weird to watch a tiny, fluffy blue rabbit with it's upper half significantly lighter than it's lower half say 'master'.

"Don't believe everything that pathetic excuse for a Digimon says. He's only got half of me which means he's only got half of us," Skye said, patting the digimon on the head.

"So where is this pure one I was sent to destory?" Okay, it was just plain scary to hear the bunny say 'destroy'. River's dream monster hadn't been... violent.

"Now that is something I'm not allowed to tell you or else you might get ideas about what your 'master' wants you to destroy. You couldn't destroy your second partner even if you tried," Skye began laughing. "Funny, I've heard about a DigiDestined having two digimon but never about one digimon having two partners."

"How do you know that_ you_ aren't the digimon?" Kyokomon asked.

"I'm the mediator, remember? If anything, you and the other one are both digimon," Skye said back. "But we share the same basic structure so I would doubt it."

"Ha, you won't even tell me what my partner's name is?" Kyokomon asked.

"Before this morning you didn't even know you had a partner, much less two," The little bunny growled but Skye ignored it. "You did, once. But then your so-called 'master' made you forget. You're only here to force me to carry out his plan."

"Ah yes, to kill the DigiDestined of Light." Kyokomon said, nodding.

"But we do it while keeping Hope alive, right?" The tiny bunny shrugged.

"With or without keeping the DigiDestined of Hope alive." He decided.

"Great, now go gather your army and your own strength," Skye told the bunny. "I have some assassination plans to come up with." Kyokomon just nodded and disappeared.

"Was that... my imaginary friend from when I was two? Why was he evil?" River asked, stepping forwards to talk to Skye. The girl's head snapped in her direction.

"Uh oh, you shouldn't be here," Skye said. River looked at her mind surprise. Had Skye gotten her memories back? "No seriously, run. If they find you they'll kill you. Oh and-" Skye stopped, seeing River's expression.

"Who do they want to kill me?" River asked. Skye shook her head.

"I think you already know," Skye said. "Look, I need you to look after TK and Kari. You already know about them, don't you? Well, an evil digimon is torturing me until I kill Kari which is kinda tempting but you see-" Skye choked. "You have to go, now." She said. River turned and ran, not looking back. If Skye was right and River already knew why they wanted her dead... then she must be the pure one. She shook her head, still running. Skye had helped a rival- She was more pure than River. River was a shy, dumpty, and defensive little girl who had just run away from her problems. River stopped at the river's edge, unable to run anymore. She took a hair tie off her wrist and left to get the only people she knew could help her- The DigiDestined. She was going to save Skye and Kyokomon from whatever evil digimon they were forced to work for. And she was going to do it with or without hope.

"Hello, is Tai home? I wanted to speak with him." River told the woman who opened the door.

"Tai! You have a visitor!" Evidently his mom called back.

"Coming!" Came the reply. Mrs. Kamiya looked at River, her face flush with embarrassment.

"Sorry about my son. He usually doesn't wake up until noon and even then he's half asleep." She said.

"Don't worry, I can wait." River assured his mom. A few minutes later, Tai appeared, still half asleep.

"Thanks mom," He said. "Anyways, come in. May I ask for your name?" River stayed in the doorway. Eventually, him mom got far enough getaway that she wouldn't hear them talking.

"Tai," She said, suddenly serious. "Your sister is in danger"

...

Now will you suggest a winner? Please? Pretty please? Review?! No? There's still time left (though the clock is ticking). Ah well...

Who is Kyokomon? Is he really Skye and River's partner? Who is the evil digimon he works for? Is he brainwashed somehow? What will Tai do? Oh, I can answer that one. Never mind. What will happen to the world when Tai rips it to shreds for putting his sister in danger? How 'pure' is River anyways? Where's Kari and when is she going to be assassinated? Find out... maybe later today or tomorrow or the next day because I'm stuck in my house for a week.

P.S: I checked the updated stories list and it thinks I did this all 20+ hours ago. Ah well...


	12. Chapter 12: Just the Beginning

I was originally gonna make a sequel where TK had fallen for Kari and _then_ Skye got possessed and started hitting on Tai to make Kari's life miserable when I realized that someone could accidentally cause even more harm. Enter Tai: The over-protective older brother who will destroy you for not voting. (Once I figure out who he's voting for he might vote. Keyword: OVER-PROTECTIVE. It won't be Kari... Skye's going to kill his little sister and whether on purpose or not she's gonna a pay... River seems a bit too... impulsive. Will Tai drag another girl into this mess? OC or DigiDestined? Decisions, decisions) So if you don't want Tai to hunt you down I suggest you R+R

To self: That's it, the world's going insane. I actually have to _threaten_ people to get a response. *sighs heavily*

...

In order to save the world, Kari and TK needed Izzy. That meant a lot of explaining of how River had just miraculously hacked into the DigiPort. Izzy wasn't believing them at all, despite the fact that TK had shown him Patamon. Kari cut him some slack though, she would do the same thing in his position. How had a little kid hacked what a computer genius couldn't?

"I don't get it," Izzy repeated for the thousandth time. "I just don't get it." He left five minutes later. There was a knock on the door. Kari benefit, saw her big brother, and turned as pale as a ghost.

"Oh, hi Tai." Kari said nervously. She had asked here parents but she hadn't asked Tai...

"Kari!" He exclaimed, dragging me out of the house by my wrist. I stayed strong.

"What is it?" I asked Tai. Instead of a reply, River stepped out from behind him.

"Kari, you need t_o _go with Tai," River said sternly."An evil digimon is trying to kill you." I rolled my eyes.

"I think I've heard that before. Which one?" River and Tai both gave me the death glare.

"It's a new enemy, you don't have Gatomon, and it's targeting you with assassination. Oh top of that, it's brainwashed my Digimon partner and infected Skye." Kari turned to look at TK so looked back. They had been right all along!

"They- brainwashed your Digimon partner?" TK asked. Okay, so maybe they hadn't made eye contact for the same _exact_ reasons but Kari could roll with it.

"I thought you didn't care about being a DigiDestined." Kari said. River's eyes flashed and her fists clenched but she took a deep breath.

"I _don't_," She said. "But I do care about saving the world and in this setting efficiency bears invention. There are probably digimon waiting all around us to murder you and I don't want to get sidetracked with another fight so _don't bring it up_. Anyways, yes. I had a dream monster when I was two who contacted me in my dreams to play with me and reward me when I was good. Little did I know that he's Kyokomon and right now he wants to kill both Kari and me.

"But why do they want to kill you?" TK asked. Kari rolled her eyes. Digimon hated DigiDestined because DigiDestined stopped them. So... did she have another light power that would allow them to win?

"That doesn't explain why you brought Tai." Kari pointed out, hopefully taking the conversation away from the part where River attacked her.

"I brought Tai because he's one of the only DigiDestined who has stayed in contact with everyone. And he's your big brother." River explained. TK opened his mouth to speak.

"One of them is here," Tai said, cutting in. "Like, now."

"What makes you say that? How do you know?" Kari asked. Tai's face contorted with sympathy and pure anger.

"Just... don't look up Kari," He said. "The rest if you, I'm going to grab her so you better have a divisor open when I fall on the other side of the room." TK just nodded, his pupils small. River practically flew into TK's room and came back with his computer. She logged on and she and TK ran to the other side of the room. Kari was scared out of her mind. There was an evil digimon above her, about to kill her when Tai slipped up.

"Digiport-" TK began. The world slowed down around Kari. Tai jumped at her, grabbing her with his arm. He head was up and she saw a huge red spider above her. The spider release a poison dart. Down, down, down. "Open!" Tai and Kari sailed through the air and fell into the Digitlal World. Down, down, down.

"Ugh. One of these days I'm going to learn how to land on my feet." Kari said, slowly getting up and holding her aching head. Nobody helped her. She looked around and found TK and River, huddled around the unconscious body of Tai. There, in his left calf, was the poison dart. Tai's body stirred and his eye kids flicked open. His eyes fell on her.

"Kari," he said in a hoarse voice, "I don't know what this poison does. You need to find the other DigiDestined to protect you." Kari leaned in close and shook her head.

"Poison could kill you," She whispered to him. "And so we need to find a healer."

"Did someone ask for a healer?" Asked a voice behind them.

"Gennai!" TK exclaimed. Kari didn't turn around.

"Can you fix him?' She asked.

"No, you have to come with me," Gennai said "Tai's been hit by a MindMaster poison. Even now it's effecting him. We need to go before it takes full effect."

"I'm not leaving my brother." The reply came automatically. As if in response, Tai let out a gasp of pain and fell back asleep. She wrapped her arms around him.

"Kari, I understand it's hard but-" River began.

"No, you don't understand," Kari said, standing up. "You don't understand anything because you got to be just a normal kid. You didn't see Wizardmon die. You've never been reduced tks fragments of data. Heck, TK lost his _real_ best friend Patamon. He came back but the feeling will never go away. You don't have that feeling, you aren't a true DigiDestined," She advanced towards River who stood her ground. "You think that just because you know TK you can feel true pain when you lose him. But he's not dead, he's happy which is more than I can say for Tai. How would you feel if Kyokomon died, forever? You don't understand because you will _never_ be one of us." She was so close to River that she could feel her breath on her cheek.

"Kari..." River's voice trailed off. "Forgive me." The attack was short and clean. Before Kari could say anything she was knocked to the floor, unconscious.

_**...**_

_**"**_**Mistress, the boy has been struck."**

_"Gennai, you better help that poor girl." _**She thought to herself.**

**"Uh mistress, what do you want me to do now?"**

**"Go in again.** **Hit**** as many as you can. If you see a man instead if a kid, hit him first. Otherwise, target the one they call TK." She commanded.**

**"Yes mistress."**

_'Where are you guys?!'_

**_'I told you they would come for_ _you.' _She rolled her eyes as the voice.**

_'Hold_ on,'** She told herself. **_'This is going to be a bumpy ride.'_

...

Poor Tai, what are they going to make him do? On a scale of one to ten, I think River enjoyed that punch a solid nine. Grief makes people do bad things, Kari's 'you'll never be one of us' speech is one of them. How does TK feel about seeing another girl punch his new girlfriend? Great actually, he always keeps hi promises and that other girl is is friend, so she understands that TK can't go back until Kari lets him. How was he supposed to know she was lying? Will he get hit with a poison dart too? Dunno, but I know one thing. PLEASE REVIEW!


	13. Chapter 13: Waterfall

All this hard work and so far...

Big thanks to animagnafreakZX! You know, for favoriting a ton of my stuff! It's always good to see someone who appreciates my version of the lovely world of Digimon.

I also wanted to thank any readers who have read this far, seeing a view on my most recent chapter makes my day. But...

SERIOUSLY PEOPLE?! Almost everybody else on this stupid 'Just In' page has a review. And I am _actually begging for them__._ I don't want to chose between my characters. Should I chose the classic Takari? Is that even appropriate with my OOC Kari? (Well, not that OOC. In my _personal_ opinion Kari is the worst character because she is an OBJECT (light) but oh well) It's read and review people! Not casually scroll through and say 'meh'!

...

River looked down at the unconscious body, lying at her feet. Boy did that feel good. Even better, TK had nodded at her when she clenched her fist and gave him the 'can I punch her now?' look. River: 1. Kari: 593876887678880e978876. Okay, so maybe Kari had won the first round and she had definitely won the war but River had at least gotten a hit.

"You really enjoyed that, didn't you?" TK asked. River was instantly guilty. She picked up Kari's unconscious arm.

"Angemon?" She suggested TK shook his head.

"Patamon was asleep in my room when we left." He explained. River sighed. She had never been one for heavy lifting.

"Any magical teleporty devices on you Gennai?" She asked hopefully. The old man laughed.

"No but I do have a friend who can help," he said. "Unimon!" Almost instantaneously, a unicorn with wings and a red mask appeared.

"Whoa, didn't Joe save you when you had that black gear?" River asked.

"You remember that specific episode?!" TK asked, surprised.

"Remember when we had to add Joe's thoughts so his stupid actions wouldn't seem out of character? That was a lot of work and they _still_ complained." River said. TK nodded and Gennai just laughed.

"Anyways Unimon, we need you to take this young girl to my rainforest house. The rest of us can walk." Gennai said, lifting Kari onto Unimon's back. Boy, for an old man he sure was strong!

And fast. River quickly learned that Gennai was fast. She and TK practically had to jog to keep up with him. Gennai's house was nearby but River felt guilty just leaving Tai alone with his injury. Ah well, she didn't want to be there when he turned either. Kari had been stupid to not just go with them. They could have avoided this whole mess if she hadn't fought back. River kept thinking for a few minutes until they arrived once more at Gennai's rainforest house.

"We're here," Gennai said, opening the door for them. He stopped TK just as he was walking through. "I want to talk to you... privately." TK nodded and River watched as they walked up the outside stairs. She went into the clinic room and found Kari, who was awake and crying.

"Go away." She said, not even looking up.

"No, we need to talk." River said sternly.

"I don't want to talk to you, I want to talk to my brother." Kari spat.

"Your brother is gone." River told her stiffly.

"Because of you! You left him there, alone. River you left him there to go insane and die of his wounds and you wouldn't let me help him!" She screeched.

"You couldn't help him anyways," River said. "Besides, he's not dead. He's just under the control of that creepy spider. Besides, that's not what I came here to talk about"

"Well then what?!" Kari asked, looking up and revealing her face, red and puffy with tears.

"I came to quit the game." River said. Kari stopped crying.

"What? But- the game's over. I already won." She said. River stroked the poor girl's hair. Poor, poor Kari. She thought the game was over? River was sure TK would disagree. After all, a promise is a promise unless the one promised-to quits. Which was what River had just done. She knew she'd made new friends now that Skye had her brain back and she just couldn't stand the sight of TK any more. Alas, she would stick around until her digimon partner was saved but after that- She would be free of TK and Kari forever. River imagined what life would be like, with Kyokomon and Skye as her best friends.

_"My hat makes me itchy." Kyokomon complained. River looked at the tiny sun hat with ear holes that she had worked hard on._

_"Maybe I should make it out of Kyokomon fur!" She suggested, lunching forward and tickling him._

_"Hey, no fair! You need both partners' permission before you turn me into hat!" Kyokomon informed her._

_"Oh do you now?" Asked Skye, arriving to the scene. "Well if _someone_ hadn't eaten all the snacks for our picnic, she might not have gotten this partner's permission"_

_"Uh oh!" Kyokomon said as the two girls began chasing him. River caught the little bunny and put him on her head._

_"How do you like my new hat?" She asked Skye. _

_"It's simply marvelous, dear." Skye assured her. They started laughing. River t__ook Kyokomon of her head and peeled off his tiny sun hat, scratching his ears._

_"Better?" She asked._

_"Better," Kyokomon decided "But no more hats." River grinned._

_"There will always be more hats."_

"Tell me Kari, do you really just want to win or do you want to have TK?" River asked.

"Win," the reply was instant. "Wait- no- TK." She said, changing her answer. River sighed.

"And that's why you shouldn't have gotten him," River said. "Ah well, I guess the game's over. You have TK now. I'll stay with you until everyone is safe. Call it a quits?" She offered a hand. Kari took her hand and shook it.

"I'm done with the game, it's a quits." River smiled and patted Kari's shoulder before leaving. She had saved the world indirectly but she had just saved TK with a simple conversation. Kari had called it a quits. Of course, she had too. It wasn't all bad, really. She had just helped a friend get out of a bad situation. The clock had reset itself, honestly. River could see the wedding now.

_"River! How do I look?" Asked a woman, running up to her. It took River a moment to figure out who she was._

_"You look great! I love your dress!" River assured her, gesturing to the long and elegant wedding dress. Of course, it was bright yellow because of the mix-up but the lucky lady could somehow pull it off._

_"Really? Do you think he'll like it?" She asked._

_"Of course. He'll love it! And the hair! Gracious, where did you get the butterfly idea?" River asked. The woman's hair was over her shoulder and little multicolored face butterflies were residing in it._

_"I was watching the butterflies in the sky, on the day he proposed." River was told. She beamed at the woman. Some friends could stay friends, even if one got th a man of both their dreams._

River smiled at her imagination. Things were looking good and she had just made them look better. River pulled out Gennai's old flute from the box of forgotten instruments. Matt's harmonica playing could blow the DigiDestined away but her flute did more- it had let her meet Skye fully and had helped save TK from death by fans. She played the first tune that popped into her mind, a bright and cheery song mode for occasions like this. The wind blew River's hair as she stood on the balcony. Digital birds chirped somewhere in the forest. The river flowed just under the balcony. River took her time and appreciated just how much of _life_ she hadn't missed by coming here.

"That's a happy song." Said a person behind her when River stopped playing. She turned around to face a humanoid bunny digimon. It looked her in the eye.

"What are you doing here?" She asked, not even bothering to ask who they were.

"Goodbye River." The rabbit grabbed her shoulders and threw her off of the balcony, into the river.

The river was cold. The river was wet. But luckily, the river was deep. Of course River knew how to swim, so she did so and began making her way to the riverbank. It was obvious the bunny was an assassin. Had he already taken Kari? What about TK? River silenced her questions and forced herself to keep swimming. The current fought against her, no matter which way she turned. River was floating downstream and she was floating fast. Downstream was bad, downstream was very bad. At last, River saw the land end. The river didn't and neither did she. The next thing River knew she was following down... a waterfall.

...

Cliffhanger! Look guys, if my story is really just that terrible you can tell me. Just- please don't flame. If my story isn't terrible and it's great and you love a character, vote for her! If it's a guy character, then it's one of three. Gennai, who you can support by voting with him; TK, who you can support by voting for his best match; and Tai, who you can support by suggesting a different character to join the story! Review please! Support the players! Come on, what do you need me to say to get you to review? 'Don't worry, River doesn't see the future unless you want her to'?


	14. Chapter 14: Cloudy Vision

Dear beloved reader,

... If you actually read this far, thanks! If you just skipped over here with no respect for storyline, I greatly recommend that you go back to the beginning. Otherwise, you won't understand my characters, why most of them hate each other, and I've even dropped hints about why there have been personality changes since Digimon Adventure 01. TK - Apoclymon had such a sad story... and the DigiDestined blew him up without guilt! Poor little tug-of-war TK, how will he live up to his promise of never giving up the fight? Kari - Wizardmon died for her and the other DigiDestined got hurt because she was stupid and went with Myotismon. If she did it again she would have lied her way out, because the Dark Ocean choses people who are already slightly evil.

Well, at least that's my theory. Where'd we leave off? Oh yes, the waterfall. Poor River, will we see her again? Does Kari realize the mistake she made? Skye didn't shake on it... so is the game still going with only one player? R+R, because Kari and River don't play by the rules anymore.

...

Kari stepped outside and let the sunlight gently bathe her with it's warmth, the flute music had stopped. Gatomon still hadn't shown up yet and Gennai was still talking to TK. Kari stepped a bit closer to the edge of the balcony and found herself bumping into someone... a very tall someone with rabbit ears and fur! She looked up at the digimon's face.

"Who are you?" She asked

"Nobody you should be concerned about, miss." It replied in a deep voice. Kari raised her eyebrows in surprise. A tall, probably powerful digimon with manners instead of teeth? A pleasant change.

"Were you the one playing the flute?" Kari asked. The rabbit digimon looked down at her and gave her a sad smile before hopping away with a few gigantic bounds. Kari raised her eyebrows. Perhaps she had been to quick to assume that the rabbit was polite.

Who was the rabbit anyways? If he had been the mysterious flute-player did that mean he told River to break the rules and taught her how to protect TK from the fan girls? If so, what had Skye been doing there with them? Just, tagging along? Why did the bunny come in the first place? Was the rabbit River's long-lost and brainwashed digimon? Nothing made sense anymore. Then again- it wasn't like anything had ever made sense in the first place.

She sighed and approached the railing. Gazing down, She could see her own reflection in the river below. Reflection-Kari waved and she began to wave back before stopping herself. Reflection-Kari smirked before changing her expression to a knowing look. Was this river... magical? Reflection-Kari motioned for Kari to come to her and she obliged, quickly heading down the stairs.

"Quickly Kari, we have to go!" Reflection-Kari said. Kari just stood there, surprise was an understatement.

"You can talk?" She asked.

"Not now," Reflection-Kari said dismissively. "Someone's in danger."

"Who- Tai?" Kari asked. Reflection-Kari didn't respond. Kari began to run downstream. She could hear someone screaming, but she couldn't tell who it was. Kari ran a little bit faster. She reached a cliff.

"Noooooooooooooooooooooo!" Reflection-Kari screamed. Kari took a peak over the edge.

"Wait- the digital world has a Grand Canyon-y thing?" Kari asked in surprise. There, right in front of her, was a huge and gaping hole between this place and another continent. There were long, rickety bridges nearby, each about 10 feet apart and each going to the other side.

"It's the seam of the Digtal World," Reflection-Kari said. "We were supposed to be done fixing it by the end of the summer. It's been like this- since the Dark Masters."

"Oh," Kari said. She looked down to see a small figure falling into the nothingness below. "That wasn't Tai, was it?" Reflection-Kari shook her head.

"That's the person I was supposed to protect. Well, before my soul was trapped here and my body was made a servant of the one who seeks to kill her. Now I'm stuck working for -"

"That's River, isn't it?" Kari asked, interrupting. Reflection-Kari just sighed before flickering out of view. Kari sat on the edge of the seam, contemplating the loss of her rival.

_'How am I going to tell TK?'_ She wondered. "_Sorry, your best friend is dead because I couldn't get to her in time? Before you say anything no I did not kill her? I know this is hard on you and as much as I'd like to sympathise I didn't exactly know her so *cough* sorry?' _There was just no way she could come up with where she told TK what had happened to River. It was so- sudden. And in Gennai's base! Wasn't it supposed to be protected? No doubt it was the rabbit digimon who threw River over the railing. Kari was even beginning to consider that the reflection had been sent it lure her here before she met the same fate.

"TeeeeKaaaaaay!" Came a screaming voice from below. If River fell forever she might become the ghost of whatever land would be put together over her. Citizens for years would be- Kari's thoughts were interrupted as a geyser of water shot out of the seam. Kari sprang to her feet and backed up, though she was still soaking wet. Kari looked at the steady water that was shooting out of the rip in the Digital World. She could just make out the silhouette of a girl. And she was , floating? Kari had the sudden urge to laugh, it was just like that resurrection scene where the girl got all powerful and the water parted and she flew and there was light shooting out of her chest! She could remember making fun of Tai for watching such a cheesy show. And now she was watching something very similar. In real life! She didn't resist the urge.

"Wow River, that was the funniest thing I think I've ever seen!" Kari said to the silhouette, still in the water but with power swirling all around her. She shadow's head looked down and she could have sworn it was staring at her. Just like she had when Kari had first walked into TK's house with River, the shadow was trying to send a message.

'_I'm not River'_ The message said. Kari felt her mouth swing open.

"Well then who fell over the waterfall?" She asked.

_'River_'

"Then who are you?!" Kari was so very, very confused. Did that mean that River was... actually dead? As in, you just lost her over a giant cliff and the first thing you worried about was how to tell TK? How messed up was that? Well, Kari _did_ hate River but it was nice to know that she could give up her futile hat search. The water stopped and evened itself as an even surface between the two pieces of land. The girl calmly walked over to Kari.

"My name is Kiseki, what's yours?" She asked.

"Kari." Kiseki gave her a warm smile.

"Miracle of Light," She said. "You forget your place. Why do you walk among the strengths of humans?" Kari stared at her blankly. Kiseki noticed this, and smiled again.

"Do you mind if I take you to a... friend of mine? He'll be interested to know that his friend just... went over a waterfall." Kari asked the girl. Kiseki nodded.

"Of course," She said. "But River must've known that her existence in this world was only to provide a distraction against the evil ones so they wouldn't suspect the _true_ pure one, right?" Kari shook her head.

"I- don't think so," Kari said. "And if she did then she forgot to tell all of us."

"All of us?" Kiseki asked excitedly. "You mean you served the mediator from the grasp of evil and have her with you?!"

"Uh... no? I meant TK, Gennai, and myself." Kari said. Who was the mediator? Why was this... Kiseki person walking around like she knew everything? The worst part was, she was able to make to seem like she actually did! Kiseki looked disappointed and Kari guide her to Gennai's rainforest house in silence. Kari approached the doors it was open.

"The Digital signature of someone under a MindMaster is all over this place, I suggest we need your friend somewhere else." Kiseki warned her. Kari ignored the girl, Gennai knew how to protect his home. She took a step into the main room and saw TK, Gennai, and Tai standing together, as if waiting for her. The door behind her shut itself.

"Hello Kari," They said simultaneously. "And welcome, Miracle."

"Trap" Kiseki squeaked behind her, backing up to the door.

"Whoops." This was going to be bad.

...

So far, for the month of March, 1 person in every 110 people who see my story actually reads it! Also, I'm pretty sure I did something wrong with The Making of a Sword because after that the number of actually visits was cut in half. Oh well, if your reading this and didn't cheat, thanks a whole bunch. Now, as a 'you're welcome', would you mind reviewing and submitting votes for the winner. Because without the constraints of programming, the game has just become as limitless as your imagination. Do you want River to have been rescued by a mysterious digimon who lived in half of what cave off one of the faces of the seam? Do you want Kari to get a heart and actually care about TK enough to _not_ do whatever it takes to win? Do you want to submit an OC by listing their NAME; AGE; APPEARANCE; CONNECTION TO TK; DIGIMON PARTNER; PERSONALITY; SPECIFIC ALLY (if any); SPECIFIC RIVAL (also if any)? I am open to pretty much anything. And yes, that includes Kiseki actually joining the game if someone wants her to. Thanks for your time and please keep reading because the ending is still far away without you in MAY THE BEST GIRL WIN!

(NO seriously, I'm going to make this thing last until someone finally submits a review meaning that this could get very boring with short, meaningless chapters if you don't do something fast. And if two people vote? Well, may the best reviewer win)


	15. Temp Break

**As all of you should know, I'm taking a break to work on another story that I want to publish all at once, rather than making everyone wait for a new chapter. I hope you forgive me but I will be back on this story soon, thank you for your patience.**


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